MADISON – Reaching the WIAA state tournament for the first time since 1985 was a significant accomplishment for the Denmark boys basketball team this season.

That will have to be enough.

Denmark’s improbable tournament run ended with a 60-43 loss to Waupun on Thursday afternoon in a Division 3 state semifinal at the Kohl Center.

Waupun (26-1) will play Martin Luther (24-3) in the title game Saturday at approximately 2:30 p.m.

“I don’t think it’s a hidden fact that people didn’t think we were going to be good before the season started. We were projected to finish fifth in our conference,” senior forward Zane Short said. “I just think it’s a testament to what putting your nose to the grindstone and working hard can do, and believing in yourself and one another.

“I think our team is a perfect example of that. We got here, and we knew deep down we could. It was just a matter of fighting off all of that outside noise.”

The Vikings trailed by just a point with 2 minutes, 2 seconds remaining in the first half, but the Warriors finished by scoring nine of the final 11 points to take a 32-24 lead into the break.

The backbreaker in the sequence came right at the end of the half, when Waupun standout guard and Northern Kentucky recruit Marcus Domask hit a 3-pointer from beyond NBA range as the buzzer sounded.

The Warriors already had some momentum before the shot. They grabbed all of it thanks to Domask.

It was a shot Domask said he needed to give himself a little confidence boost entering the final 18 minutes. He scored Waupun’s first four points but couldn’t get anything going for much of the first half, shooting just 4-for-13. It included being blocked twice by Denmark forward Patrick Suemnick.

All that went away with one big shot.

“I think we had a turnover and fast-break bucket, and we kind of collected ourselves, and then Marcus hit that deep 3-pointer,” said Denmark coach Cody Stelmach, whose team was outrebounded 40-25 and outscored 42-24 in the paint. “That kind of set the tone going into halftime.

“These guys, they played phenomenal on defense. I was really happy. There wasn’t many missed assignments overall. Waupun is a heck of a team. They have weapons all across the board. We couldn’t put a couple buckets in a row together. That really hurt us.”

There was a chance to cut into the Warriors’ lead to start the second half after Denmark forced Waupun to miss its first eight shots. The only problem is the Vikings were just 1-for-7 during that span and also watched Suemnick head to the bench with his fourth personal with 11:53 remaining.

Denmark got to within 40-33 on a bucket in the paint from Short with 9:18 left, but that’s as close as it would get the rest of the way.

Waupun scored seven straight to take a comfortable 14-point advantage and built the lead to as much as 19 in the final minutes.

The Warriors finished the game scoring 20 of the final 30 points and hitting 10 of their last 13 shots. Denmark went just 6-for-23 over the final 15 minutes.

Domask overcame that slow start to finish with 21 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three steals, while teammate Trevor VandeZande had 13 points.

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Denmark senior Zane Short talks about the Vikings' loss to Waupun on Thursday in a WIAA Division 3 state semifinal game at the Kohl Center in Madison.
Mike Sherry, USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

Waupun shot 46 percent (23-for-50) overall and 12-for-17 from the line to help offset a 2-for-11 performance from long range.

Short had 16 points and Suemnick 11 for the Vikings, who finished at 35.4 percent overall (17-for-48), 31.3 percent from 3 (5-for-16) and 57.1 percent from the line (4-for-7).

“I thought Denmark today, they play hard. Real hard,” said Waupun coach Dan Domask, whose team is back in Madison after winning a state title in 2016. “I thought we played really hard ourselves, and that kept the game in our favor. I didn’t think we were very crisp on offense. I think our guys are all feeling that way.”

Denmark was led by its group of six seniors this season, including its entire starting five. There will be some work to get back here again in 2020, but the senior class walked away with some pride for all the things it did.

The Vikings finished 22-5, won a share of the North Eastern Conference championship and, most importantly, earned a long-awaited trip to state.

“We have been together, some of us since second grade until Pat came in sixth grade,” Short said. “From sixth grade on until 12th grade, we have grown very close as a unit.

“I love those guys just like they are my brothers. I would do anything for them. It’s sad to say that it’s over, but we all knew it had to come to an end some way. We wanted to go out with a bang. I mean, first time in a long time for a team from Denmark getting here. It’s not the end result we wanted, but it’s going to have to do.”

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Denmark coach Cody Stelmach discusses the Vikings' loss to Waupun on Thursday in a WIAA Division 3 state semifinal game at the Kohl Center in Madison.
Mike Sherry, USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin